Holyrood power talks to continue

Talks are due to continue between the SNP and the Greens to broker a power-sharing deal on the Scottish Executive.

Later tonight the 'Kirking of the Parliament' will also take place in St Giles' Cathedral on the Royal Mile on the eve of the third session of the Scottish Parliament.

A Nationalist delegation lead by Alex Salmond met with the Greens in Edinburgh on Monday, but no agreement on partnership was reached.

Green co-leader Robin Harper said afterwards that the party's preferred arrangement of "confidence and supply," which stops short of a formal coalition, had been discussed.

The Greens are not ruling out a formal coalition, with the parties agreed on key issues like their opposition to nuclear power stations in Scotland.

But a rainbow coalition with the Lib Dems is now unlikely, with Mr Salmond admitting on Monday that he expected to run a minority government.

The SNP's 47 MSPs, the brace of Green seats, along with the Lib Dems' 16 - totalling 65 - would have provided a narrow working majority of one in the 129-seat Parliament.

But Nicol Stephen's party has effectively rejected a deal with the SNP because of the commitment to a referendum on independence.

Meanwhile, the Prince of Wales is scheduled to attend the 'Kirking of the Parliament' event, along with newly-elected MSPs, representatives of Scotland's faiths and other guests from across the country.

The Very Reverend Gilleasbuig Macmillan, who led the Kirking ceremonies in 1999 and 2003, will lead the evening service.